Lagu Lagu 2

When Monica Akihary was a child she used to cycle around to family and friends in the village to bring them presents that her parents had brought back from their holidays. This is an old custom, rooted in the Moluccan boat voyage ritual, whereby knowledge gained and presents received by the traveller were shared with the villagers upon returning home. In this way a community continues to develop.

A present for guitarist Niels Brouwer and her was the encounter with the lap steel guitarist Bing Leiwakabessy, who travelled to Amsterdam in 2011. He told them about his music, the lap steel and its Moluccan tuning, and his beginnings as a musician in 1947. He also described what it’s like now, to be playing as a 94 year old with young musicians. Uncle Bing, as they call him, expressed his hope for the development of the lap steel in their music.

With this in mind, and while listening to field recordings made on the islands of Ambon, Saparua, Kai, Manawoka, Tanimbar, Selary and Babar in 1948-1949, the idea arose for Niels and Monica to record lagu lagu music with Ernst Glerum, Joost Buis and Onno Govaert. Their open and curious attitude and distinct musical characters inspired both to approach the pieces in a different way and to give this music a personal tint.